Tormented Souls
by blue.eyed.lullabye
Summary: Momo is now left in Aizen's clutches after being abducted from the Soul Society. Will she be able to withstand the mental and physical abuse? Will she be rescued before any serious damage occurs? And how will things go in the world of the living with our heroes gone? Sequel to Tormented Minds, first story description inside if you only want to read this one! Rated for mild language
1. Chapter 1: High Nerves

**Disclaimer: If I own Bleach, than you have a curly pink tail with fluff and glitter at the tip, pink, pointed cat ears protruding from your temples, and paws with retractable claws instead of hands. Are any of you large and odd pink cat/humans? I think not…Unfortunately :,C **

**A/N: Alright! So here I am writing a sequel to my story Tormented Minds. To anyone who hasn't read that first story yet, it would be great if you would go back and do that, but, if you have no time and would just like to read this one, I will write a short description under the A/N so you know what's going on. Anyways, I am excited to write this one, (Who am I kidding, I'm always excited to write my story's :D) and I hope that your just as excited to read it. I have looked back into Tormented Minds, and honestly, I can't believe that I wrote it! I have gotten SO much better at writing, so I hope that this story will be even better than that one! I may even go back and fix all of Tormented Minds problems, make it a little less mediocre and amateur. I hope to make their personalities a little closer to what they actually are in this story.**

**Also, I really hope that Momo's imprisonment isn't too much like Orihime's. That was not my intention, so hopefully that doesn't happen. But there are bound to be similarities, and I would like to apologize for that. **

**I have decided to keep it an IchiRuki romance, and I'm going to try to put a little more fluff into it, and it will most likely be full of adventure! But there will also be UryuuxOrihime and ToshiroxMomo. I am so excited that I can't keep writing this authors note! I am going to get started haha :D**

**Tormented Minds Shortish Description!:** In the beginning, Ichigo and Rukia are both rejecting their obvious feelings for each other. After a short period of trying to whisk the feelings away (Barely haha) they gradually accept each other as lovers after a long night out with bowling, dinner, and a movie. But, on that very night, Ichigo's hollow, who has been very talkative lately, breaks free and tries to kill Rukia. She escapes with her life, though, after being saved by Ichigo's sheer will to save her. It wasn't long after Hichigo's attack though, that the hollow started to have unwanted feelings for Rukia. Ichigo's feelings were so strong that they began to flow into the white being. Orihime sees the pair together and tries her best to lose her feelings for Ichigo, eventually succeeding and finding herself in love with Uryuu. Uryuu returns her feelings as well, having always cared for her. But, just as thing seem to be going right, a large ball of energy crashes to the earth, causing a violent earthquake. Renji is sent from the soul society to check things out, and finds that it was no ordinary occurrence. From within the ball of energy emerged an army of Adjuchas (level of hollow) and their leader, the Espada Ulquiorra. Rukia and Ichigo end up bumping into a strong female Adjucha named Daichi. Ichigo fights her, but ends up shattering his sword and releasing his hollow to finish the job for him. Hichigo has a glorious time slaughtering the woman, and then tells Rukia that he loves her (In a very not fluffy moment…), and that when he takes over Ichigo's body she wouldn't be left alone. Kisuke, having known about the incident, send word to the soul society and makes a secret request for a small group of soul reapers to dispatch and help to quickly dispose of the problem. Rangiku, Toshiro, Renji, and Byakuya are sent to the world of the living and pay a visit to the Kurosaki household. Byakuya is unhappy with how close that Ichigo and Rukia have become though. The group leaves the residence after telling Ichigo and Rukia about the battle plans on how they will deal with the infestation. Shortly after, there is a car crash near the Kurosaki clinic, and Ichigo is told to help out with the patients. After he gets there, though, there are many many more patients than expected. The people had been attacked, and now the Kurosaki's are panicking and trying to take care of them while they wait for the ambulances to take the injured to a larger hospital. Ichigo takes care of a dying man, and with his last words he describes his attackers, and asks that Ichigo kills them for him because they had taken his daughters hand. Ichigo recognizes the main attacker as Ulquiorra, and is immediately furious. He and Rukia head to Kisuke's and the group heads to the forest where they intruders were staying. An epic battle ensues, and Byakuya ends up fighting Ulquiorra. But, just as the Adjuchas were disposed of, a more threatening enemy shows its face. Back in Las Noches, Aizen had sent out Grimmjow and his new Fraccione to keep the soul reapers busy for a while longer. But mostly, he just wanted to keep Toshiro there. Aizen had sent out his first, second, and third Espada to the soul society to retrieve Momo, and the army had merely been a distraction. After Momo was retrieved, the Arrancars were brought back to Las Noches before the battle had been completed. Aizen had told Grimmjow and Ulquiorra to not become involved in the pointless battles in case they should hurt themselves, but both Espada had fought. As punishment, Gin ran them both through with his sword's Shikai. They both survived. Back in the world of the living, people are settling down after the battle, Ichigo and Rukia go out for ice cream, and Rukia finally tells Ichigo that she loves him. Hichigo lays in his inner world, wondering why he had to fall in love with Rukia, and why it had to be so hard. But, now Momo is now left frightened and alone in Las Noches with the man who had betrayed her. **(If anyone who has read this story read the description and saw that I left something important out, please pm it to me! Thanks!)**

**Tormented Souls**

**Chapter 1: High Nerves**

"Put this on." Grimmjow demanded the cowering girl as she covered her face, protecting it from the white uniform that Grimmjow had just tossed at her. He rolled his eyes with irritation and anger at the small woman. Why would Lord Aizen have this woman brought here? From what he had seen, she was nothing but a spineless, worthless, and easily frightened girl.

Momo glared at the blue-haired creature frighteningly, but her body language spoke the words that she wouldn't say. Her slightly bent back and trembling legs showed that she was uncomfortable and frightened.

But maybe there was something more to her. Her look of determination and hatred showed that she was strong.

But then again her body language showed that she was fearful and broken.

Momo picked up the uniform from the ground and stared at it. It had a square neckline and was all white except for a thick band around the bottom of the skirt that was black, along with a band just under the breast. The sleeves were long and oversized the further down they went. It was simple, and similar to dresses that she had seen princesses wear in stories from the world of the living. Why must she wear this?

Momo waited for Grimmjow to leave, but he just continued to stare at her in thought. She was unsure of what to do, and was becoming uncomfortable under his cerulean eyes.

"Alright. There's only a coupla rules we got for you." Grimmjow finally said to her, coming out of his train of thought. He stuck his hands into his pockets before he continued. "One, ya gotta stay in this room. Two, ya gotta stay quiet. Three, you will always wear that uniform. An four, you will always address Aizen as Lord. Got it?" He asked her in a snappy, bored tone. Why couldn't they have sent somebody else to do this? That brought another thought to his mind.

"Oh, an I aint the only one who'll be walkin in on ya and feedin ya." He turned around and walked towards the door. At least he wouldn't be the only one would have to take care of her. "It'll be a mixture of Espada and Arrancars." He didn't even care if she knew what that was or not. He just continued to walk forward, reaching the door and heaving it open. "Somebody'll be here in a bit." He said as he shut the door, gratefully leaving the room and getting on with his life.

Back in the lonely stone space, Momo sunk to the ground, staring at the uniform that she was supposed to wear. She couldn't believe what had happened. Why it had happened. How it had happened. Her face hurt terribly and was slightly swollen on the side, due to the fact that they had knocked her unconscious while she resided in that odd bag. Her whole body ached, actually. Her hands were injured from the Hado that she had released closely to the odd bag. She began to obediently remove her clothing to replace it with the gown. The thought occurred to her that she had never said goodbye to Toshiro when he left for the world of the living as she pulled her arm through the large sleeve.

But hadn't known that she would never see him again.

After a moment she realized it went even deeper. She would never see Renji, or Rangiku, or Izuru, or any of the other lieutenants again. She allowed a small tear to escape from her eye. Now she was stuck with a man who she had mixed feelings for, and many overwhelmingly strong beings who would obviously rather she was dead.

She wanted to hate him. She wanted to despise him and never look highly upon him again. But she _couldn't_. He was her Captain. She loved him.

_NO! _She suddenly yelled at herself in her mind. _You do NOT love _him_! You loved a man who does not exist. _She reminded herself mournfully. _He is not your Captain._

Once dressed, she sunk to the ground and pulled her knees to her chest. Oh how she wished that they hadn't taken her Tobiume when she was brought here. She could really use someone to talk to.

/

"Get offa me!" Rukia yelled at the orange haired boy who had rolled over on top of her. It was early in the morning, earlier than one would usually want to get up. Rukia had lay with him in his bed, and fallen asleep. But now the dumb asshole had rolled over on top of her in his sleep and was half suffocating her.

She began to hit him on his sides, her small arms flailing about. He barely changed his expression; the small slaps obviously not registering on his pain meter. She paused for a moment to take aim, and finally struck him right in his jaw, shocking him awake.

"Shit!" He exclaimed as he jumped to the side and into the wall to get away from her fists of fury. Rukia sat up and glared upon him. "What the hell was that for?" He asked, rubbing his jaw with a scowl on his face. He didn't appreciate being woken so rudely and so early.

But _she_ didn't appreciate being crushed. "Because you rolled over onto me and half suffocated me you idiot!" She whisper yelled, trying to avoid waking his family.

"No I didn't!" He whisper yelled back at her, reminding himself of his sleeping family. He glared at the small creature. His irritated eyes strayed for half a second though, his gaze falling not on her angry face, but on the small and intricate wooden picture frame behind her head where it rested on his desk. Inside of it was a picture of him and Rukia sleeping closely one night. His father had come in and taken it at the late hour for his odd scrapbook that he was using to prove that his son was actually able to pick up a chick. Seeing it, Ichigo immediately ripped it out of the infernal book and went upstairs enraged. But Rukia had decided to keep it and had bought a frame for it, placing it on his desk. Although he would never admit it, he was grateful of his father for taking the picture, because it was his favorite one.

Suddenly, Ichigo's gut was impacted with a tiny, yet powerful, fist. The breath was knocked out of him and he was no longer staring at the picture. Instead, he was looking at the sheets on his bed.

"Are you even listening strawberry?" She asked him with a tone of irritation and anger.

Ichigo removed his hand from his abdomen and rubbed his eyes after recovering from the unexpected blow. "Just go back to bed." He told her tiredly. Ichigo slowly laid back down; the bed shifted when he moved and he pulled the sheets back over his body. Rukia remained sitting for a moment, looking down at the boy who had just shut his eyes. She checked her soul phone for the time.

2:13

Well, it was a little early for her to go back to her closet. She made sure that her alarm was set, and once she knew that it would go off, she laid back down next to Ichigo, pulling the covers all around her. The bed shifted less noticeably when she moved, her being smaller than Ichigo. It was warm in the space under the blanket where they both were laying closely. Rukia's toes were cold, so she pressed them against Ichigo's legs.

"Your toes are cold." Ichigo mumbled, stating the obvious.

Rukia smiled happily as she snuggled closer to his chest, completely forgetting their scuffle. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head.

"Love you." He told her, on the brink of unconsciousness.

Rukia contentedly closed her eyes, glad that she had taken the initiative to tell him how she felt that night. Now she could tell him how she really feels whenever she wants.

"I love you too." She responded quietly.

_**I'm still here King.**_

/

A Captains meeting was called for immediately after Byakuya and Toshiro had arrived in the Soul Society. Now all of the Captains were standing in two lines, forming a sort of pathway. At the end of this pathway stood Head Captain Yammamoto. He hit his large stick against the ground, causing a great echo throughout the hall.

"We will now commence the Captains meeting." His unopened eyes were grave as the solemn silence fell over the room. "It concerns the abduction of Lieutenant Hinamori. She was taken from the Sereitei during the abrupt chaos caused by the intrusion of the three Espada."

Toshiro's knuckles clenched in anger. _Those bastards._

"Of course," the Head Captain continued, "retrieving Lieutenant Hinamori is our top concern, but the matters of the many wounded and crumbling walls need attention." The final words of his statement echoed lightly off of the walls of the great room.

Toshiro took a moment to realize what the Head Captain was saying. They were not going to get Momo right away. They were going to wait? Could they really make Momo wait for rescue? Could she really stand being near Aizen, both mentally and physically? What if she was being harmed, or worse?

What if she was dead?

Toshiro boldly hopped out of line and bowed his top half low. "Sir! May I request an early leave to Hueco Mundo to retrieve Lieutenant Hinamori?" His tone was urgent, and intense. He _had_ to go and get her. He _had_ to save her.

"Captain Hitsugaya, why should I grant this request?" The elderly man inquired.

"Because she is a close friend of mine, Sir, and I fear for her wellbeing." He admitted to him, eager to leave.

He old man took a minute to think it through, weighing his options. "Permission granted."

Toshiro silently let out a breath that he was unaware he was holding.

"But," Yammamoto began, "I am only allowing you to take two subordinates for backup. The rest must stay here to assist us. Please decide immediately and leave."

"Yes Sir. Thank you Sir." Toshiro stated as he hurriedly left the Captains meeting prematurely. Once outside the door, he rounded the corner and saw Rangiku, her ear to the stone.

"Captain!" She screamed when she was caught, stepping backwards with wide and surprised eyes. She hadn't expected him until the meeting had finished.

"Rangiku! What are you doing?" Toshiro yelled at her, irritated. _Why doesn't this surprise me?_ He thought glumly.

Rangiku turned around, her back to him, and crossed her arms. "Cool your jets." She said sarcastically. "I couldn't hear anything anyways." She whined a little quieter; regretful for her loss of stolen information.

Toshiro decided that there wasn't any time for this. He strode forward and latched his hand onto her arm, dragging her.

"We must leave immediately." He told his Lieutenant, making his first choice for backup.

"Why?" She asked him, confused.

"To save Momo!" He snapped back at her, implying that the reason was obvious.

Rangiku smiled mockingly. She leaned over the top of him. "Somebody has their first crush?"

"Can you ever be serious?"

/

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! _Rukia's soul phone started to screech. Ichigo immediately lurched awake and swung his legs over the side of his bed, as he usually would when there was a hollow. There was a loud thud on the ground as Rukia made impact with it.

"Ugh!" She exclaimed as she was suddenly taken away from her slumber and had the breath knocked out of her.

_Oh no. Here it comes. _Ichigo thought as he waited for her blow.

_**Nice move, dumbass. Tha's howya treat a Queen?**_

Ichigo ignored the voice in his head, tired of hearing it. He was tired of having to constantly hear that demon, and occasionally feel what it was feeling.

Instead of the blow that he was expecting, though, he heard Rukia's voice.

"Hello?" She asked in a business-like tone.

_No hollow? _Ichigo thought. He laid back down, relieved for the lack of job, but confused as to why she had received a call.

"I understand Sir." She said as she hung up. Rukia stood up from the floor with an evil smile on her face. She brought her knuckles in front of her body and cracked them, one by one. Ichigo, having already shut his eyes, didn't see the fist that was well aimed for his face.

_**Heh heh heh.**_

"Idiot! Watch what you're doing!" She quietly scolded him for carelessly tossing her over the side of the bed. As much as she wanted to, she didn't have any time to beat him more. Rukia walked over to her closet and opened it up, retrieving her soul candy dispenser. She swallowed the small circular pill and her Gigai was left behind. Inside of it was the ever irritating Chappy.

"Ma'am?" She asked Rukia, who was now a Shinigami.

"Please hold things down for a few days. I'll be gone. Go to school, and act like me." She asked Chappy.

"Yes Ma'am!" She exclaimed happily, saluting.

"Oh, and there is a big test coming up." She began, rueful to be leaving such a creature in charge of it. "Please," she sincerely said, "attempt the problems?"

"Yes Ma'am!" Chappy said once again. Rukia doubted the promise, but tried to remain hopeful.

She then turned around and looked at Ichigo, who was now rubbing his sore jaw.

"Well?" She asked him expectantly. He looked at her with a questioning look.

"Well what?" He asked, removing his hand from his face.

"Get out of your body." She tossed him the sleeping stuffed animal that was snuggling up on her pillow, drooling as he softly repeated Rukia's name. He screamed lightly in the air as he was awakened rudely. "We're going on a little trip."

/

"Welcome to my humble abode!" Said Kisuke enthusiastically. He whipped out his fan from nowhere and held it in front of his face, slightly waving it.

"Thank you." Said Toshiro as he stepped over the threshold. The shady shopkeeper stepped aside to allow the pair of Shinigami through the door.

"Hey, wait up!" A voice called from a distance just as Kisuke was about to shut the door. He glanced out into the dark and made out another pair of Soul Reapers.

"Well hello there!" He said as they ran up to the doorway.

"Hey Kisuke." Said Ichigo as he nonchalantly walked through the door. Rukia shadowed Ichigo into the shop.

"Well, shall we head downstairs?" He asked, his tone switching to a serious one.

"Yes, that would be nice." Said Toshiro just as seriously.

The five people headed down the large stairway that lead to the underground training room where Kisuke would be opening a Garganta.

Once they were in the room, Kisuke began his expected speech. "Alright, you know the drill. Once you pass through that crevice there is no stable ground, you must form it on your own."

"Yes we know this, will you please just open up the Garganta?" Asked Toshiro, irritated. He was ready to leave NOW.

"Sheesh. Don't expect me to care about you guys again." Said Kisuke as he began the process of opening the portal.

/

Momo turned her head as she heard the scraping of stone on stone as the door was pushed open. Her eyes widened when she saw the bright violet eyes and large spoon shaped clothing of the Espada.

"Hey, little girl." He said, his grin huge, the never-ending teeth shining in the moonlight.

**A/N: Yayyy! First chapter is done! What do you all think? Oh…..and I would like to ask that you all keep your negative criticism to yourselves, or at least to a minimum. I don't want to take away your opinions. I just can't handle it all of it. If it is constructive criticism, I will try to read it and accept it. Sorry if I sound like a little kid….. Anyways, is it interesting and well written? Are you all going to continue? Please REVIEW! It makes me feel SO FLUFFY INSIDE! :D Add to favorites and such!**

Oh! And also, I have a tumblr and YouTube account! My tumblr name is blue-eyed-lullabye, and my blogs name is Anime this, Manga that. My YouTube account is .lullabye and I make AMVs! (Anime music videos!)


	2. Chapter 2: Rising Tempers

**Disclaimer: I have never owned Bleach, and I never in a million years will….as unfortunate of a thought as that is…**

**A/N: I'm SO SORRY about the late update! I have had SO MUCH going on lately! I'm going to be moving in the next couple weeks, so packing has been awful. Also, my Mom is getting married next month, so there's a lot of planning and preparing there. Please forgive me! Oh, I just wanted to say quickly that this sequel is only really popular with people who have read the first story and are aware that this one exists. That isn't a problem for me though! Just you guys who are reading it and will continue to read it are enough for me to want to write this story :D but, I may start another one while I'm writing this one. So if that happens, I would like to apologize in advance for any late updates that this story may have. I haven't written 2 stories at once before, and I may just update the more popular one first. But don't worry! I won't abandon this story, and I won't wait for some outrageous amount of time like three weeks to update. Also, this **_**is **_**an IchiRuki, but I'm going to have a lot about Momo and others in here to. Okay, I'm done blabbing, enjoy the story!**

**Chapter 2: Rising Tempers**

The door to Momo's room was pried open in a loud and creaking manner. From her seated position on the floor, she turned her head to see who was entering the dark and depressing cell. Her eyes widened slightly at the Espada's strange appearance. His eyes were carved into his face in slits and they were a bright shade of violet. His long, oily appearing, black hair fell just to his shoulders, maybe a little past. She couldn't really tell because of the way he was cocking his head to the side in a curious and joking manner. She could only see one of his violet eyes, as the other one was hidden behind a bright white eye-patch. Even if he was only using one eye, his gaze made her uncomfortable and frightened. But, what was most surprising to her, was his odd and oversized spoon-shaped headwear that seemed to be attached to the rest of his clothing, and his colossal sword, if it could even be called a sword. Maybe a 'blade', would be a better term. It consisted of two shapes that were back to back to one another. They looked surprisingly similar to the lonely moon that lit up the gloomy world of Hueco Mundo. He held the blade facing downwards behind his back. The reflective metal that made the two crescents shone brightly as the moon that shone downwards into the cell gleamed over it. Behind the frightening man stood another, less menacing looking, hollow. His hair was a dirty looking blonde color, and he had a bright teal rectangular marking on his cheek. It seemed to start from somewhere under his jaw where she couldn't see. He also wore an eye-patch, but his was as black as the night.

"_Oh, an I aint the only one who'll be walkin in on ya and feedin ya." _Grimmjow had said before he left her cell only hours before. How many more terrifying people will she be forced to meet?

Will _He_ ever come to her?

_No! _She yelled at herself for the second time that day as she shook her head from side to side and tried to push the image of the traitorous man from her thoughts.

The two hollows stared at her for a moment, the black haired one breaking into a large never-ending smile. Momo felt the hair on her arms stand up as her gaze fell upon his shining white teeth. She realized something at that moment.

_They are armed. _Her eyes widened a little more at the fact. _And earlier they took my Tobiume._

She inhaled deeply, trying to calm her nerves. She reminded herself that if they tried to harm her, she was a master at Kido and could hold them off for a while. _There is nothing to be afraid of. They obviously want me to stay alive for some reason; why else would they clothe me and feed me? _She tried not to think of the reasons why they wanted her alive, though.

The taller man who was standing in front or the dirty blonde began to move his legs, walking. Momo quickly rose to her feet, feeling defenseless. Perhaps if she was a bit taller she would feel better. But, as he got closer to her, she realized just how tall he was. He had to be at least 7 feet. Her heart dropped in her chest at the realization. She remembered how useless her Tobiume was against the three Espada in the Soul Society, and now she didn't even have her sword. How would she fare against these two?

As the shorter man began to walk, she noticed that he was pushing a shiny cart that seemed to contain her next meal. She realized that she was very hungry; she couldn't remember the last time that she had eaten. The blonde man pushed the cart until it was to the side of the tall man, and once again took his place behind the Espada.

The tall hollow looked at her in amusement. "Hey." He said to her.

That one word was enough to make her hair stand taller than it already was; his voice was unpleasant. He quickly sized her up, running his eyes up and down her body. It made her uncomfortable to be under his stare, but she tried to hide the fact by staring right into the violet eye, unafraid on the outside.

He walked closer to her, looking slightly irritated. "One of them." He began as he was standing directly in front of her. He grabbed her chin and violently jerked her head up towards the sky so that she would be staring up at his tall frame. "Don't you ever look at me like that." He venomously hissed as he threw her towards the floor. He latched his hand onto the cloth holding all of her hair together as he did it, ripping it out along with much of her hair. She screamed in pan and hit the stone hard, the thump of her body making a noise that echoed throughout the small space. Her head cracked sharply with the cold ground, causing her to see orbs in her vision. He smiled happily down at her; happy to have caused the brat pain. "Sorry, that wasn't in our dress code." He chuckled darkly. She lay on the ground for a moment longer, but then brought her arms around and pushed herself up into a kneeling position. She quickly stood once again, but it was a little more difficult than the first time. _You've had worse. _She reminded herself. A small stream of blood was trickling from her scalp and onto the crisp white of her uniform; forever staining it. Her black hair was now hanging around her head, and she looked down at the ground in shock. The cloth was lying on the ground, still filled with some of her hair. She knew that it without a doubt must have left a bald spot, but what did looks matter in a place like this? Her vision began to clear up as she watched the cruel Espada walk away from her and towards the cart.

"Eat everything that is on this cart, or I won't hesitate to kill you." He said in a bored tone. Although the tone wasn't excited, she did catch an edge of menace in it. "Let's go Tesla." He said to the other man in the room who had been standing on the sidelines.

"Of course, Master Nnoitra." He said as he bowed slightly, allowing Nnoitra to leave the room before he did.

They exited as quickly as they came. The door echoed as it shut and once again Momo was all alone.

And she was angry.

She stomped over to the silver cart and glared at it in hate. She looked at the top of it and saw that the meal she had been served was nothing more than a stale looking roll and plain rice that was swimming in the water that it was cooked in.

No, scratch that.

It was swimming in the water that it was _undercooked_ in. Had they even boiled it? Well they must have at least _attempted _to cook it, because when she felt the grains with her finger they felt warm.

She stared at the food. And that's all that she did. She stared. Anger coursed through her veins the whole time she stared at the 'meal.' She knew that she should be grateful that they were even feeding her, and that she should accept what they have given her and fill her empty stomach. But she didn't want to eat any of it. It felt like it was being brought to her directly by _His_ hand. She didn't want it. As she stared into the grains she felt sick.

"_I won't hesitate to kill you." _Nnoitra's words echoed in her skull. And she didn't doubt him, not for one second. But she wasn't really angry that they had presented her with such distasteful cuisine. She was upset at the Espada for treating her in such a way. She was upset that she wasn't strong enough to defend herself. She was upset that she was in the same building with _Him._ She was upset that the walls she had built in _His_ absence were crumbling, barely sticking together. She was upset that she would never see Toshiro again.

Angry tears began to sting in her eyes, and she stared up at the ceiling. _I will not cry. I will not cry._

She grasped the bowl of rice and grabbed the bun. The texture of it confirmed that it was stale. She stared hatefully at the moon just outside of her window and was about to scream, but then she remembered that she was to remain quiet. So she just grunted in frustration and chucked the bun out her window, which was only blocked off with three iron bars. Her excellent aim sent the bun flying straight out the window, and the rice was about to follow. She ran forward and jumped as high as she could, successfully placing herself in front of the bars. She quickly whipped the bowl so that the rice was chucked from it without her actually throwing the bowl. She landed softly on her feet and slammed the bowl back down onto the cart.

She walked over to the wall that had the window carved into it and sat down, leaning her back against the stone. She chose to not sit on the comfortable looking couch. She didn't need any comfort from _Him. _She hit her head against the wall and heard a squishing sound. Hearing it she was startled for a moment, but then remembered the blood that was there. She knew that she had to stop it quickly because head wounds bled more than others. She quickly began to perform a healing Kido on herself, and the bleeding stopped. Her hair though, unfortunately, was soaked with it in the area where it had been bleeding. She tried to think of how to clean it, and eventually her eyes fell upon the cart. In her anger she hadn't noticed the small glass of water that had been brought in. She stood up and retrieved it, bringing it with her to the darkest corner of the room. She saw no drains or holes and didn't want to have it anywhere near her. She dumped the water out in her hair, ignoring the whining thirst in the back of her throat. There would be more water later; or at least she hoped there would. Maybe if Nnoitra didn't kill her first.

The now red water splattered onto the ground, echoing throughout the lonely cell. She quickly moved her feet out of the way, but she was too late. Her feet didn't get wet, but the bottom of her dress was now stained with light red spatters of diluted blood. She sighed, but decided once again that it didn't matter what she looked like.

The blood that had dripped onto her shoulder was now starting to dry, but it still felt sticky. She had no water left to clean it though, so that was how it would stay. She would rather have clean hair than a clean shoulder anyways. She walked over to the spot where she had been sitting on the ground and resumed her position, using the wall to slide her down. She could feel the bruises beginning to form on her side, but she didn't bother to fix them; she was out of energy.

She curled her knees up to her chest and watched as the bloody water made its way out of the corner, spreading thinly on the floor. The moon lightly reflected upon the light crimson liquid as it moved further and further; a reminder of where she was and what it entailed.

/

"Could you run any slower?" Ichigo yelled at the black-haired midget in front of him. But, she had heard enough.

She stopped where she was and Ichigo hit her back, having been running. She barely moved at the blow, though, and Ichigo was pushed backwards. Rukia's hands clenched and she turned around and glared up at him.

"Shut your big mouth! You're the one who needs me to form a path in front of you! I can run as fast as I want, and I don't want to hear about how antsy you are!" She yelled as she walked up to him, closer than she already was. "I suggest you learn how to create your own damn path, or you put up with me!" She yelled louder than she had already been.

Toshiro, who was slightly ahead of them, stopped where he was. Is all that these two ever do is fight? And their_ together_? He grabbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and his pointer finger, sighing heavily. Rangiku, who was on her own path next to him, began to giggle.

"They are just so dang cute!" She said as she stared at Rukia punching Ichigo in the side of his head.

Toshiro ignored her unnecessary comment and yelled to the couple behind them who were currently grabbing each-others hair and aiming fists at the others face.

"HEY!" He screamed in their direction. Both soul reapers immediately froze in the position they were in, surprised at the unexpected call. Dumb looks passed over their faces as he continued. "Can you TRY to be professional?" His fists clenched in anger. "We are trying to save Momo! I have no time for your childish fighting!" He yelled, truly angry at their nearly constant bickering. They slowly removed their limbs from each other, backing away from each other.

Rukia stared down at the Reishi path she had formed. "My deepest apologies Captain. You're right." She began to run down her path again, forming it as she went. Ichigo followed closely behind her, quiet. Rangiku also began to run again alongside her Captain.

_Finally, some peace and quiet. _Toshiro thought as he ran. Actually, it was almost too quiet. No one dared utter a peep after his outburst; they were afraid that they may upset him more. So they just continued to run down the seemingly endless path.

"Ichigo." Toshiro said suddenly, breaking the complete silence.

"Hmm?" Ichigo replied, as if he had been brought out of some other thought.

"How long will it take us to get to Las Noches?" He asked, curious. He knew that that was where Momo was, and that Ichigo had been there before.

"Eh," Ichigo scratched the back of his head.

"What is it?" Toshiro asked him, wondering what reason he could have for his actions. Ichigo took his eyes off of his feet and looked at Toshiro.

"Well, last time I was here I got a ride." He admitted to the white-haired Captain. Toshiro stared back at him with an unamused face.

"A ride?" He asked, disbelieving.

"Yeah, we made friends with a coupla hollows. And they had a pet, see? We rode there on it." Ichigo told him as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Why did I even bring you along." Toshiro sighed as he continued his running.

Ichigo's face got surprised for a moment, but then it turned angry. "Hey! You're lucky I'm here to help." He stated to Squad Ten's Captain.

"No. I believe that it is the other way around. You're lucky that I brought you." Toshiro responded flatly. He reminisced on why he had brought the orange haired Shinigami. It was only because he was a Substitute, not the real thing. Since he was only a Substitute, and wasn't under any orders from the Soul Society, he was allowed to bring him with. He didn't really count as a Soul Reaper like the others. And he figured that he would take as much muscle as he could. He chose to bring Rangiku because she was his Lieutenant, and he trusted her and her abilities. He chose to bring Rukia because of her sword skills and the familiarity of the area she had from coming to save Orihime Inoue.

Ichigo grumbled, not wanting to push Toshiro any further. And because Rukia had sent him a warning glance. They continued to run in silence, the only conversation having died down.

/

Uryuu stood upon his rooftop, staring out towards the horizon. _What is this unique pressure? _He continued to stare, but he didn't see anything. All he could do was feel the pressure and guess as to what it was. But he had no good guesses.

/

"Hmm?" Orihime said as she felt an unusual spiritual pressure. She stared up from her ice cream that Tatsuki had brought her in celebration of healing from her 'stair fall.'

"What is it Orihime?" Tatsuki asked from across the table.

"Nothing." She replied looking back into her ice cream, breathing in the scent of the wasabi that she had topped it with.

/

Chad looked up from tuning his bass guitar. He could feel it. But he wasn't sure what it was. The pressure was odd, that was for sure, but he couldn't place it. He set his guitar down and gazed out his window.

/

"Great." Urahara sighed as he sipped on his tea. "Tessai? Would you fetch me the phone? I need to make a call."

**A/N: Alright! I finally finished it. Sorry again about the late update. I always feel bad about those haha. But, I would like to say something about the timing of this story and where it takes place. It happens after Orihime was kidnapped, but none of the Espada are dead. Why?...Because I love them :D Also, I watch Bleach on Adult Swim, so I am only on the English Dubbed episodes; I have not watched the Subbed ones. I am only in the Zanpakutou Arc, so I still don't know how the Arrancar Arc ends, so please excuse any wrong information. Thanks! I also have posted a quick drawing of Momo in her uniform. It is on my deviantart account. My username is blue-eyed-lullabye. Check it out! Don't forget to Review! It really is a pretty button. And buttons are meant to be pressed. Enjoy :)**


	3. Chapter 3: Hotaru kara Haraku

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, but I will soon own the mangas and other cool stuff :) I can't wait!**

**A/N: Hello all! Welcome back to my story! I hope that you were waiting for it. Also, I wanted to say that I started to write another story with my little sister. I love it! And it is SO much fun to toss ideas around with her. She happens to be Anime/Manga addicted too. And she's read all of my stories. I haven't posted it yet, and I'm not sure if I will until it's finished, but I'll let you know when I do! **

**I would like to apologize that, at the moment, this story isn't as 'IchiRuki' as it should be, considering that that is what it is labeled as. It's more Momo-Toshiro-y at the moment. But don't you worry! There is lots of IchiRuki coming! It's only in an early stage at the moment, so bear with me. Just a bit of story development at the moment. **

**Also, I deeply apologize for the LATE update. No cookies for me :( But I finally got moved into my new house! But, if were being honest, about half of the time that I spent not writing was procrastination. I don't deny it. But, now maybe I'll have some more time to write. But, I apologize in advance, because I will probably be late again very soon. My mom is getting married next week. I am very busy, but I will definitely get on a more regular update schedule. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 3: Hotaru kara Haraku**

Momo was huddled in her prison room, staring at the wall across from her. _Why would Captain Aizen want me? _She thought for the umpteenth time. _No! I mean….just Aizen. _She once again had to correct herself. She shook her head back and forth briefly, in an attempt to clear her mind.

How many hours had passed? How long had it been since the Arrancar with the rectangular green marking on his face had come back for the cart? And had they noticed that she hadn't actually eaten her meal?

She hoped that they didn't. Because if they had, Nnoitra would return to kill her. At first when she had thrown her food rations out the window it had seemed like a great idea. How would they ever figure out that she hadn't eaten it? The food was long gone, never to be seen again. But now, after time had passed, she was beginning to have her doubts. How could they not notice? They surely must know that she had refused their offering. They must just be waiting for the right time to pounce on her and slit her throat. They must be waiting for her to fall asleep.

Well, that definitely wasn't going to happen. Momo could not find any sleep; in fact, she hadn't slept a wink since she was brought here. How long has it been? She had no way to tell the time. She knew that it couldn't have been long; they had only brought her one meal. Well, unless they weren't bringing her any more meals.

Oh no.

Would they starve her to death? Kill her without getting their hands dirty?

Momo had begun to become paranoid in the absence of the Arrancars. All of the thoughts racing within her head weren't benefitting her situation either.

Momo scooched back even further in the dark corner she was sitting in. She wished that she had eaten the food now, but at the same time she was glad that she didn't. She did not want to accept any kindness from that man. Never again.

Momo's eyebrows knitted together as she slowly lay down onto her un-bruised side. The floor was cold, but Momo didn't mind. What did it matter if she was comfortable? She didn't want any of his comfort anyways. She continued to stare straight forward at the door, not concentrating on anything in particular. After some time had passed, she heard a sound that she thought she would never hear again; a voice.

"I am entering now." She heard a strange male voice state.

She quickly pushed herself into a sitting position as she had done the last time; being lower than the enemy would be incapacitating. She slowly stood now, and stared straight forward as the door opened.

"Why hello." She heard a silky, male voice float across the room. She watched as he flipped his chin length pink hair to the side. His golden eyes peered at her from behind his thick-rimmed eyeglasses. "Do come with me." He asked of her.

_They must know. _She thought as she slowly began to trudge forward towards the odd man. _He must be here to bring me to Nnoitra. _

Momo was not scared, though. She was a proud Shinigami, and she would hold her head high and accept her fate, no matter what it may be.

/

Arriving in Hueco Mundo happened a bit differently than Ichigo remembered. Instead of coming in through a building as they had the first time, they fell into a large mound of sand, smack dab in the middle of nowhere. Ichigo stood up and rolled his neck; it was stiff from the fall down. Once he had finished, he turned his head to the side and searched the landscape for any familiar landmarks. Unfortunately, he found none. And wouldn't he at least see Las Noches? That place was huge.

Come to think of it, why had they come in through a different area?

"Hey, Toshiro." He began his sentence. Just as he was about to continue though, the white haired Captain was right in front of him, glaring frighteningly.

"It's Captain Hitsugaya." He told him in his most menacing voice. His eyes expressed anger and irritation.

For a moment, Ichigo felt threatened. But, he brushed it off, deciding that he would pay no attention to the threat that had been presented to him. Pipsqueak.

"Yeah, whatever Toshiro." He said as he walked out of Toshiro's line of sight. "Anyways, I was gonna ask you, why we came out here." He said as if Toshiro knew what he was talking about.

"Why wouldn't we?" Toshiro asked him boredly but with irritation as he turned around. He had obviously given up on making Ichigo address him properly. Well, at least for now.

"Oh. Well, it's just that when me, Chad, and Uryuu came the last time, we came in through a building?" He began to speak slower as his statement turned into a question. Toshiro's face implied that he thought Ichigo was stupid.

The Captain of Squad 10 sighed. "Our reishi paths obviously veered in a different path from the direction that you took. We're in Hueco Mundo, but where we come out cannot be predicted." Toshiro looked tired, and upset in the slightest way.

Toshiro was upset that they had obviously come out of the Garganta farther away from Las Noches than he had been hoping. That meant that they were farther away from Momo. And _that_ meant that there was more time for her to be harmed. He didn't even know in what direction he should be heading. But, perhaps if he concentrated, he would be able to latch onto a spiritual pressure that would be worth following. He needed a lead.

Toshiro knew that there wasn't any use to him worrying. He knew that not only was Momo skilled, but she was also smart. She knew how to out think and out maneuver her enemys, and she was strong enough to hold them off. But, he also knew that Momo was fragile-minded. She had been ever since that bastard Aizen betrayed the whole soul society. That is what he worried about. He knew that she was living in his presence know, however close it may be. He was worried that that would make her mind weak, and therefore make her skills weak. If she was weak, she may be harmed.

And now he was so far away from her. He had to wait for so long to help her; to rescue her.

But how long could _she _wait.

"We have to move." Toshiro said to his three followers.

"Yes Captain." Rangiku and Rukia said respectfully as Ichigo stared around the landscape, trying to figure out the right direction.

Toshiro blew off his disrespect and turned away from the group. He closed his eyes and bowed his head, concentrating. He would find the correct spiritual pressure; he had to.

/

Within Ichigo's sideways inner world, a hollow lounged about on his side. He turned over and laid on his back, his face showing an expression of slight confusion.

He could feel it. He could feel power welling within. He could feel strength. And he could feel confidence. Not that he ever had a lack of it.

His face curled into a smile once he had surveyed the power that he could feel. He could feel just where he was.

_Hueco Mundo._ He cheerily thought to himself, not projecting it far enough for the King to hear. _Wrong move, King._

He chuckled wildly to himself, his mouth opening wide as the slow chuckle built up into a loud cackle.

He folded his arms underneath his head. "Perfect." He stated loudly, listening to his own voice bounce off of the millions of panes of glass around him.

He definitely would _not _let this opportunity slip through his fingertips.

/

"Got it." Toshiro quietly said to himself as he found a familiar spiritual pressure. It was very weak, and if they didn't begin to move in it's direction, he would lose it. It was that far away. "We have to move, now." He said for the second time. He began to run in the correct direction.

"Hey, wait up!" Ichigo exclaimed as he ran after Toshiro. Rukia and Rangiku quickly followed right behind him, their feet moving the sand granules around as they made impact with the ground.

"There's no time. We must move quickly." Toshiro called over his shoulder to the orange haired Shinigami. He turned his face forward once again, intent on finding his goal.

_We can't even see Las Noches. _Ichigo thought as he ran forward after the Captain. _How far away is it? Are we even heading in the right direction? _He worried absently. But, he brushed them off just as quickly as they had begun to spawn. By the look on Toshiro's face a minute ago, there was no way that they would be heading in the wrong direction.

The look was full of determination, willpower, and concern. He would not have mistaken the pressure he picked up; not in this situation.

Ichigo, without even thinking over it too much, rubbed his hand over his temple. His head had begun to ache. But, he had no time to worry about such small issues; he was on a mission.

/

"Keep moving." Szayel called absently ahead of him to Momo. He was escorting her, and he did not want her to have the chance to try any funny business. If she was ahead of him, the chance of such a thing would be much less likely. If anything, she would be more uncomfortable being unable to see her enemy.

"Yes." Momo murmured, barely intelligible. She began to take larger footsteps, her feet making muffled thumps against the shiny tiles.

"Turn at the next door on the left." The pink haired man ordered her. "Please, just let yourself in."

"Yes." She repeated. So they had arrived. She expected the worst.

Momo saw the door approaching, and she straightened out her shoulders, and held her head a little higher. She had no time to say her goodbyes; who would she say them to anyways? No one was here with her.

She would just have to believe that her goodbyes could travel through the air and through time. She hoped that they would reach all of those who are dear to her, and that they would not grieve over her loss. They shouldn't grieve over her; they should celebrate and cherish the time that they had together.

Momo smiled as she reached out for the knob. _Good bye Rangiku; you have always helped me, believed in me, and saved me countless times._

_Good bye Isane; your guidance has always been cherished._

_Good bye Izuru; I have always valued our friendship, and your wisdom has always been appreciated. You saved my life, and I am eternally grateful. _

_Goodbye Renji; how could one have a better friend, and co-worker?_

Momo's hand was clammy as she grasped the knob and turned it.

Her thoughts paused for a moment. But, she made a decision. In death, what would it matter anymore, hiding your opinions?

_Goodbye Shiro-chan. When we were young, I looked after you. You looked up to me; well, atleast when I would bring you watermelon. _She smiled at the memory. _You entered the academy young, and quickly passed me in ranks. But I have never been sour about it; In fact, I was proud. I was happy for you. And now, instead of you looking up to me, I now look up to you. You have always guided me, picked me up when I fell, given me reassurance during my darkest hours. Comfort is always found in your presence. When I look back upon all of our experiences, memories, and hours spent with one another, I am able to admit the obvious; to both myself, and you. Well, at least to you in spirit._

Momo felt great now that she was finally going to admit her own feelings to herself. It was easy, once she realized how much he meant to her, and how much she loved his company; his smiles, no matter how rare they were.

_I love you. I will always love you. And I always have._

_Not having more time with one another is my only regret._

Momo felt a small amount of moisture in her eyes, but she would not cry. She would never allow this enemy before her the pleasure.

She swung the door to her fate open lightly, as if it were fragile as glass. And she sent off her last goodbye; an afterthought.

_Goodbye, Captain Aizen. _She thought almost reluctantly. Although she knew it wasn't right, that the man she had once cherished so much was but only an illusion, she could not die without saying what was in her heart. _My heart still longs for the man whom I used to know, but I know now that he simply does not exist. I thank you for the kindness you showed me, even if it was fake. _

Momo knew that coming to terms with her thoughts and feelings before death would set her soul free.

She took two tentative steps into the room. And in the room was nothing that she was expecting to see. Momo, now thoroughly confused, stopped in her tracks at the sight.

/

"Thank you all for coming." Kisuke nodded at the three teenagers in front of him, being served tea by walking stuffed animals. "I'm assuming you all know why I asked you here?" He asked them all.

Chad, Uryuu, and Orihime nodded to him, acknowledging their assumptions. Under the table that they were sitting at, Orihime's small hand was encircled in Uryuu's larger one. He had tried to be very close and comforting to her ever since her accident during the battle days ago. Thankfully, she had been healed quickly, though she had admitted to slight pain in her abdomen every once in a while. But, thankfully, she would be alright.

Uryuu suffered very few wounds during the battle; most of them he had actually inflicted upon himself. His opponent's power had led him to believe that he was shackled in a dirty dungeon, and that rats were all over him, trying to consume him, and that bugs were crawling in and on his skin. He had clawed at his own skin in attempt to be rid of the nonexistent creatures.

Chad had healed very well after his injury. His collar bone had been smashed when his opponent had taken on the form of his arm and used his own techniques against him. Unfortunately, he had been caught off guard and injured. But now he was doing better, and suffering very little pain.

"Excuse me, Mr. Urahara?" Orihime asked the man from across the table.

He looked up at her from under his hat. "Yes?" He replied, prepared to answer her question.

"Well, do you know what it is? I mean, making that weird pressure." She brought her free hand up to pull her hair out of her face and tuck it behind her ear. "I haven't felt anything like it before, but maybe you have?" She finished her question.

Kisuke thought over his answer for a moment. "I have ever felt it before, but I have read about it, and heard about it from a close friend of mine who had a face to face encounter with one of these creatures."

"Well, what is it?" Uryuu asked him, becoming a little impatient.

"Hotaru kara Haraku." Yurouichi said from the doorway before Urahara could speak. "Or Firefly from Hell." She finished looking at the teenagers. "Their existence dates back hundreds of years." She continued as she walked forward into the room and plopped down onto the floor in the space between Chad and Kisuke. Noba walked towards her on the table to bring her some hot tea, and quickly retreated, his footsteps making small squeaks the whole time.

"I'm assuming that you're Kisuke's lose friend?" Uryuu asked her.

"Yes." She said back. "I did have a encounter with one of them while I was Captain of Squad Two, long ago." She took a sip of her tea before she began her story.

"I was out on a special patrol mission, just a quick overview of the area really." She looked up from her tea. "While I was out there, I felt an odd pressure that I wasn't familiar with. It was my obligation to go and check it out, see if there would be any problems. Once I arrived on the spot of the pressure, whatever it was began to run away. I jumped further aand further until it eventually made it to the treeline. By this time, I had become quite irritated with the creature; I wasn't at full speed, if I had been, there would be no way that it had been able to outrun me. So, I came to full speed and quickly grabbed it and slammed it to the ground." Yurouichi flipped her bangs out of her eyes. "It was the most beautiful man I had ever seen." She said as Kisuke rolled his eyes.

"I believe you must have been mistaken, I was at the barracks the whole time." Kisuke said to Yurouichi as he flipped his hair backwards with his hand.

She ignored his uneccessary comment and decided to finish her story. "His beauty caught me off-guard and I was stunned for a moment; a mistake that I should ever have made." She crossed her arms and stared at the three teens. "You wanna know why they're called fireflies?" She asked.

They nodded to her. Orihime looked like she was about to jump at Yorouichi and force the story out of her if she didn't say it; she had been completely sucked in.

"His skin glowed bright though it was dark out. It seemed like a dream to me. But, I knew that it wasn't, and that he was potentially dangerous, so I drew my sword; with him under me it would be easy to question or dispose of him, depending on what happened. I was right to assume that he was dangerous."

"What happened?" Orihime asked her curiously.

"Something completely unexpected." She began, reminiscing. "He began to get hot; burning hot. I was confused at first, but I jumped off of him as soon as he burst into flames."

The room was quiet as Yoruichi described the odd being. "He then sprouted wings and flew, believe it or not." She said as she took another sip of her tea. "He threw fireballs at me, and shot of streams of flames. Thankfully, it's pretty hard to hit me as fast as I am."

The room was silent as the odd story sunk in. Yoruichi bega to speak again.

"He was very fast, and eventually flew away high in the sky. I was right on his tail until he hit me right in the gut with a fireball that threw me back to the ground. I was cautious, just not cautious enough."

"They basically have a good defense, offense, and alluring qualities." Kisuke began an explanation. "They lure in prey with their good looks, or stun them like Yorouichi. Then, they turn into hellish monsters once you are close enough."

"And these things are rare?" Chad asked, interested.

"Well, they were thought to be extinct for a long time, like the Quincy's." Kisuke said, motioning to Uryuu. "But, when Yorouichi met one, people were baffled, especially myself; I was Captain of Squad 12 at the time." He said, placing his glass down on the table. "But, no more have been found since then that I know of. The fact that I am sensing more than one now is odd and fascinating."

"What do they want?" Orihime asked Kisuke and Yorouichi.

Kisuke looked at Yorouichi, allowing her to answer. "They want the carbon from your burnt bodies."

/

"Sh-!" Rukia let out as she felt something trip her while she was running. She fell towards the ground quickly, as she was caught off-guard. She braced herself to hit it, but never did. Instead of hitting the cold sand hard, she was lifted up in warm arms softly.

Ichigo cradled her in his arms snuggly. Rukia blushed lightly. "Thank you." She said to him as she looked up at his face.

But he wasn't looking back at her. Instead, he was staring straight forward with a scowl on his face. Directly in front of the four Shinigami was a large hollow; the thing that had tripped Rukia.

/

"Do you like it?" Szayel asked from behind Momo. She was in a room that was completely different from what she had pictured. It wasn't a torture chamber, and there was no Nnoitra in sight. All that she could see was a lot of chrome, wires, and machines.

"Where are we?" She asked the pink haired man.

He chuckled darkly. "This is my testing lab. I have been given the honor from Lord Aizen to run a few tests on you." Momo turned around quickly and saw the look on his face.

Twisted, excited, and very dark.

Momo was frightened. What would they do to her?

**A/N: Finally done! Itt took me way too long, but I hope there were lots of interesting developments! Don't forget to review, please ^-^ And add this story to favorites and alert and all.**


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